Stories, research, & reflections.

Sherman Easley-Robb was diagnosed with autism at twenty months, got an NES in kindergarten, and finished his degree Cum Laude in 2025. In two months he built a video game so anyone could ride the route Kanye Tagbo-Okeke cycled across seven Nigerian states. This is his story, in his own words. He is looking for work in games and animation.

The Texas Workforce Commission has opened the 11th annual Texas HireAbility campaign, and Governor Abbott named October Disability Employment Awareness Month. There is a lot to celebrate. There is also a question worth asking. Of the Texans served last year, how many were still working six months later? One table, published every October, would tell us.

Bemba, Nigerian Pidgin, Ibibio, Ebira and Bini each carry an international language code, and each is missing from YouTube's language list. Bislama, with 10,000 speakers, is on it. A look at what a dropdown menu decides, and what we can ask for.

Start Here is a free video series for parents of autistic children: one short video a month, in every language we can reach, with an activity a parent can practice at home the same day. Eighteen videos are live in thirteen languages, recorded by volunteers on their own phones. Four ways to help, including three languages still waiting for a first voice.

Eilan, an autistic educator and the voice from Kuwait in our Spark a Spectrum, founded The Learning Lab, a tutoring space where lessons are shaped around how each student’s mind works. In her own words, why struggling to learn does not mean you cannot learn.

Two families have been selected in the first round of ABA World's sponsored autism evaluation program, one in Africa and one in Central America. Each receives a comprehensive online evaluation and a written report at no cost. Applications for the February 2027 round are open now.

If you are the parent of an autistic child, you have probably heard the word assessment more times than you can count. Different professionals often mean slightly different things by it. This guide untangles the terminology across the lifespan, explaining the common types of assessments, their purposes, and what to expect.

ABA World sponsors one free autism evaluation every six months for a family in need, anywhere in the world. ABA World funds and facilitates the program; the evaluation is conducted online via Zoom by licensed clinicians, including a neurologist. Applications are open now. The first family will be selected at the end of August 2026.

Ahead of the Nigeria Association of Special Education Teachers 37th Annual National Conference in Port Harcourt, a reflection on the educators, clinicians, and leaders shaping special needs education across Nigeria, and on Dr. Catherine James Atteng, whose leadership made the invitation possible.

Houston Public Media journalist Melissa Enaje reports on what Greater Houston families want as their autistic children grow into adults. Quality of life is the cumulative outcome of many decisions made through the years, often by people who did not know they were shaping a life.

Four hundred and ninety-two voters from twelve countries chose the winners of the Spark a Spectrum 2026 dance competition. Joy Onuh Delight (Kogi) took first, Chimchong Ambima (Bauchi) second, and Daniel Agbo (Enugu) third. Every dancer who came forward receives a Certificate of Participation.

57 young artists from Nigeria and the United States created original artwork honoring Kanyeyachukwu Tagbo-Okeke and autistic abilities. Today, we celebrate the artists, autism awareness and inclusion.

As Regional Director of the Western Africa Coordinating Centre at Africa CDC, Dr. Kokou Alinon brings two decades of public health expertise to autism awareness and inclusion across the continent.

Happiness Jonas Sarki, National Health Fellow deployed to Bauchi State, built a community-wide autism awareness movement on her own time and at her own expense. She is now Community Outreach and Family Engagement Lead for Spark a Spectrum 2026.

Amarachi Nwankwo, a former SWAP fellow turned Spark a Spectrum coordinator, secured the support of Abia State's Commissioner of Health for the April 2 autism screening event. A volunteer reached out. A ministry responded.

On March 1, 2026, the PAASI Spark Screening Training Studio launched, teaching autism screening in five modules. Nineteen days later it had reached 1,000 learners, a tribute to the research and the people who built it.

Volunteers across Africa are translating autism screening tools into fifteen African languages. Their precision, generosity, and cultural fluency are connecting families with early identification and support.

Mojolaoluwa E. Bamise's first-author publication in the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis shows that complex behavior-analytic skills can be taught effectively to Nigerian professionals using affordable, culturally responsive, asynchronous training. A collaboration with The Zeebah Foundation in Abuja.

Research by Jamal Adio and colleagues documents barriers facing people with visual impairment in Nigerian agriculture. The findings inform vocational policy for disability inclusion, with relevance well beyond agriculture.

Nigeria currently has no government-regulated system for autism professionals. Families face a landscape where credentials cannot be verified, and children experience an average seven-year delay between first concerns and formal diagnosis. A tiered regulatory system with a public registry would change that.

The Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare partnered with ABA World and CADD UHCL to train 774 healthcare professionals across all Nigerian local governments. 97% achieved perfect post-training scores, with healthcare workers from across the country requesting deeper specialisation.

Faby Diallo, M.Ed., BCBA, LBA, IBA, leads autism care and inclusive education across Africa, bridging clinical practice with the LAB 360 Project and the global Spark a Spectrum movement.

Early diagnosis is vital, yet in sub-Saharan Africa screening is scarce. On April 2, 2026, World Autism Awareness Day, ABA World is organizing a multi-continental screening event, and inviting collaborators, volunteers, and supporters to join.

Rwanda has made significant strides in autism awareness and inclusion through government policy, local organizations like Autisme Rwanda, and international partnerships that bring training, policy, and direct services to families.

After 596 presentations, 71 families served, 98 organizational partnerships, and zero salaries paid, ABA World marks its tenth anniversary by inviting everyone to find their place in this movement.

The 2025 CDC report puts autism prevalence at 1 in 31 children in the US. As American autism research funding is cut, the effect reaches African research just as countries begin building their own capacity.

Only 14% of autistic adults in the US hold competitive, integrated employment. Employer bias and limited awareness drive that gap, and inclusive workplaces, with simple accommodations, benefit everyone.

A fourth-year medical student at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Abdulsalam Oladipipo volunteers with ABA World supporting autism awareness while building an extensive research record and leading in his community.

Who sets the research agenda in Africa? A conversation with Dr. Julius Kirimi Sindi of the African Population and Health Research Center, and a case for partnerships, not just funding.

The CDC's 2025 report shows 1 in 31 US children identified with autism, a 385% rise since 2000. In Nigeria, the crisis is one of underdiagnosis and missed early opportunity.

In June 2025, the Oyana Mbogo Otu Tawaye program marked a milestone in Lagos, distributing laptops to five members and reaffirming a commitment to mentorship, education, and opportunity for young Nigerians.

When people hear Lagos, they picture lions and no air conditioning. After more than a decade working across Nigeria, Loukia Tsami answers the stereotypes with the city she loves, its energy, culture, and the warmth of its people.

On Africa Day, a tribute to the people at the heart of the continent, the generosity, resilience, and creativity Loukia Tsami has witnessed across twelve years of collaboration from Egypt to South Africa.

During Autism Awareness Month, a tribute to Cynthia Obinwanne, whose TalkLove Africa Foundation has become a platform for autism advocacy in Port Harcourt, and a mother of four who leads with compassion and action.

A dental surgeon committed to equity, Dr. Hildah Bwembya Nkonde provides cost-free oral healthcare to marginalized communities in Zambia and Botswana, including individuals with physical, developmental, and intellectual disabilities.

As CEO of the Mimfad Autism Developmental and Other Disabilities Support Initiative, Maryam Ibrahim Maifada has built workshops, campaigns, and school visits that reach families across Kaduna, Nigeria.

A meta-analysis of 202 studies covering 56 million pregnancies made headlines worldwide. Yet despite decades of research, the causes of autism remain unknown, and what we hold are correlations rather than causal mechanisms.

President Bola Tinubu publicly recognized young artist Kanyeyachukwu Tagbo Okeke on World Autism Awareness Day 2025, elevating autism to the national stage and challenging long-held stigmas.

A visit to Patrick's Speech and Languages Centre in Ikeja GRA, Lagos, and a tribute to the founder who has integrated over 50 children into mainstream schools and built the first Nigerian autism center registered with IBCCES.

At a roadside stand at the edge of Lagos, shoes line a simple wooden table. A story of acceptance, intuition, and the quiet heroes who build a world around someone's differences.

Sodiq Adelami Jimoh, a UI/UX designer and creative professional from Nigeria, has been named the first recipient of the Oyana Imọ́ Scholarship, an initiative supporting Nigerian students pursuing international education.

Since our first collaboration in 2016, Jeddlee Stephen Kinnii has advocated for children with autism and developmental disabilities in Liberia. His Story Pot initiative offers a platform for voices that have been overlooked.

Our colleague and Oyana Imọ́ Scholar David Adeyemo has received acceptance letters from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Emory University, after building a career across clinical pharmacy, research, and community health in Nigeria.

Healthcare visits can be a source of stress for individuals with autism and their caregivers. Our research team continues to explore how telehealth, in collaboration with dental and medical professionals, can promote comfort during exams, and what families can practice at home.

Autism is common in Nigerian children, yet many cases remain undiagnosed and untreated. Cost, distance, and misunderstanding keep families from care, and better screening, awareness, and structured programs are urgently needed.

Independence can mean many things, from dressing and cooking to socializing and making choices. Life skills, social skills, and transition planning are three places families can begin.